Name: Date: Bow Down, Shadrach by Joy Cowley Getting him up the steps was the hardest part. Hannah bribed while Mikey threatened, and Sky, holding both doors open, kept yelling at them to hurry. Hannah waved a bunch of grass under Shadrach's nose, saying, "You don't realize that this is a matter of life or death. Your life, Shadrach!" At the other end, Mikey pushed and growled, "Move, you big dog's dinner! After much balking and snorting, Shadrach suddenly changed his mind and lurched up the steps, straight through the entrance, and into the hallway of the school. Sky and Mikey quickly closed the doors. It was a small school, with only four classrooms off the main hall. They had no trouble coaxing Shadrach into the nearest classroom, because the sweet smell of apples from school lunches hung in the air. They moved a couple of old, wooden desks aside to give the huge horse a place to stand. The clomp, clomp of his hooves on the floor made Hannah and Mikey nervous. "You stay here, Mikey, while I check to make sure everyone has gone home for the day," Hannah whispered. "While you're at it, see if you can find a bucket in the janitor's closet, and bring Shadrach some water," Mikey hissed. "He's terribly thirsty." "Why are you whispering?" asked Sky. "Don't you think anyone can hear the clompity-clomp?" If there's anyone here." "Shhhhhh," cautioned Hannah, although she knew Sky was right, and she crept out into the hall. "Mikey, look at these picture books. Read me this story about a horse. Please? Please?" begged Sky. "Not now," said Mikey, taking his schoolbag off his shoulders. Like the rest of him, his lunch bag had been soaked by the runaway hose, but fortunately the lunch inside was covered with plastic. He began to unwrap it but then saw that it was squashed six sandwiches turned into one soggy mass of bread, lettuce, and peanut butter. He remembered that he'd used his bag as a cushion in the freight truck, and he felt worse because he could only blame himself. He was hungry, but he'd have to be starving to death to eat that mess. Soon Hannah returned with a plastic bucket of water. "All clear," she sighed as she set the bucket in front of Shadrach, who drank quickly and noisily. "Poor thirsty horse," said Hannah, kissing him on the nose. "I'll get you some more." "Do you think you should?" Mikey asked. He was aware that the marks they were making with their wet clothes and shoes would be nothing compared with a puddle from Shadrach, and this was a school, not a barn. 1. In the passage, the word coaxing means A. forcing. B. pulling. C. pushing. D. persuading. 2. Which word has a PREFIX underlined? A. began B. unwrap C. unwrap D. sandwiches 1
3. Which word has a SUFFIX underlined? A. runaway B. fortunately C. fortunately D. runaway _GCPS_05_RD_RSVC_T5 (_GCPS_05_RD_RSVC_T5) 2
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The Magic Turtle by Alvin Schwartz Here is the story of a "magic" trick with a turtle. You will probably catch on quickly... read about someone who did not. The candy store was owned by Madame Perrier and her husband, Louis. They lived in an apartment above the store with six goldfish and a small turtle no more than an inch across. Madame kept the fish and the turtle in a fish tank on a sill outside the kitchen window. Several times a day, she fed them bread crumbs and talked to them about the weather, the store, the candy, whatever was on her mind. A boy named Jack lived in the apartment just above the Perriers. On warm spring nights, he would lean out his open window and watch Madame feed her pets, and eavesdrop as she talked to them. One evening, as he was watching and listening, he had an idea. It seemed so silly that he laughed. But then he thought, Madame would not mind. She would think it was funny. The next day, Jack bought five turtles at a pet shop. They all looked just like Madame Perrier's turtle, except that they were larger. They ranged in size from about two inches across to about six inches across. He also bought some cheesecloth and wire and a bamboo fishing pole. That night, Jack made a small scoop net with the cheesecloth and wire and attached it to the fishing pole. Early the next morning, before anyone else was awake, he reached out of his kitchen window with the scoop net and removed Madame's turtle from the tank. He put it in a bucket of water. Then he replaced it with a turtle that was two inches across or twice as large. When Madame Perrier saw the turtle, she got very excited. "It's twice as big as it was yesterday!" she told Louis. The next morning, Jack removed the two-inch turtle and replaced it with a four-inch turtle. It had doubled in size again! When Madame saw it, she ran to the telephone and called everybody she knew. The following morning, while the Perriers slept, Jack removed the four-inch turtle and replaced it with a turtle that was five inches across. That caused a sensation. All day long, people in the neighborhood came to see the magic turtle, then went out and told others. The crowd got so large a policeman was sent to keep order. Soon a reporter 4
arrived to interview Madame and take her picture with the turtle. Madame was going to be famous! Jack decided not to replace the five-inch turtle with his six-inch turtle. The tank did not seem large enough. He also was afraid that Madame could not stand the shock. Instead, he decided to make the turtle smaller once more. Early the next morning, Jack replaced the five-inch turtle with a three-inch turtle. Of course, when Madame discovered what had happened, the excitement continued. Still more people came to see the turtle, and the reporter came back to interview her again. The next morning, Jack replaced the three-inch turtle with the one-inch turtle Madame owned at the beginning. That night, he put away the dip net and the bamboo pole. He took his five turtles to the park and let them loose in a stream. On the way home, he stopped in to see Madame's turtle. It was away for a while, at the zoo, she said. A scientist was studying its strange behavior. Adapted from As I Remember Him by Hans Zinsser. Copyright 1940. Published by Little, Brown and Company. 4. Why did Jack's trick with the turtle so easily fool Madame Perrier? A. Madame paid little attention to the turtle. B. The turtle tank was outside the window. C. Madame did not know much about turtles. D. Jack used truly magic turtles. 5. In this story the turtle is said to be magic because it A. is impossible to understand. B. has supernatural power. C. disappears and reappears. D. comes from another planet. 6. Which did Jack do when he decided his trick was making too much excitement? A. He called a scientist. B. He stopped in to see Madame's turtle. C. He told Madame about his trick. D. He put back a smaller turtle. 7. Which is probably the reason that a scientist is studying the turtle at the end of the story? A. Many people came to see it. B. Turtles don't usually change size so quickly. C. He wants to put it in the zoo. D. Madame was not feeding it properly. 5
8. Which evidence from the passage shows MOST CLEARLY that Jack planned to keep his trick a secret? A. He didn't use the six-inch turtle. B. He put the original turtle back into the tank. C. He released his five turtles into a stream. D. He visited Madame to see what was going on. 9. Imagine the story told Madame Perrier's side instead of Jack's. What would her story be about? A. her six goldfish B. the mystery of the turtle C. a practical joke D. setting turtles free 10. Which words BEST describe Jack? A. mean and thoughtless B. selfish and lazy C. kind and cheerful D. playful and clever _GCPS_05_RD_RSVC_T5 (_GCPS_05_RD_RSVC_T5) 6
Answer Key 1. D) persuading. 2. B) unwrap 3. C) fortunately 4. C) Madame did not know much about turtles. 5. A) is impossible to understand. 6. D) He put back a smaller turtle. 7. B) Turtles don't usually change size so quickly. 8. C) He released his five turtles into a stream. 9. B) the mystery of the turtle 10. D) playful and clever 7